Lucknow, Aug 30 - More than a week after police busted a massive racket in adulterated blood in Uttar Pradesh, another report on the quality of blood seized reveals that it was infected with the highly contagious Hepatitis B and C virus - painting an alarming picture of the possibility of patients having contracted it.

The Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS), in another report to the government Friday, said the Hepatitis virus strains were found in the adulterated blood. The report was also submitted to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), an FDA source said Sunday.

A detailed examination of the blood, seized by the authorities from a private nursing home run illegally by a government doctor had revealed that very poor quality blood with extremely low levels of haemoglobin was being supplied to patients in different hospitals.

Over a period of two years, 100,000 units of the contaminated blood were sold.

Uttar Pradesh Police arrested six people, including an anaesthetist from the state-run Balrampur Hospital, in connection with the racket on Aug 22. The racket was allegedly being run with the connivance of several well-known private blood banks and doctors.

'We have received the report but the details cannot be revealed now because it will be presented in the court as evidence against the accused on Monday,' FDA commissioner Lalit Verma told IANS.